Speechless...

Today was day 2 for gutting out houses in New Orleans. Waking up this morning, taking a shower and shuttling through the heavy morning commute into the city, I had no idea that my day would end the way it did. I'll start off by saying this. Despite my shortcomings and trials, I am so blessed and extremely grateful that I have all the things that I need. It may not seem like much but it means so much to me...even down to my baby pictures and pictures of my family are much more precious to me as a result of what I learned today.

Milynda and I worked with Team Am-Shalom (Chicago) again today. Our teams were in sync and we worked well together. During our breaks we shared food, had fellowship and traveled together attempting to find any restroom that was open. We completely gutted out the house in two days and the volunteer coordinator said that we did it in record time. As we worked on the home today, a black woman from across the street came over and spoke to us. She thanked us for coming and helping with the clean up. She proceeded to tell us her story and her frustrations with FEMA and fake construction contractors. Her name is Lola. On the same block that worked lived an old woman who just recently died in her trailer. From that point on, each person that still lived in the neighborhood made a pact that no one else would be alone like this old woman.

Lola and her teenage daughter, Brandy (17), now live in a one room trailer while their home is being renovated. She gave us a tour of both places and I took lots of pictures. Everyone congregated around her and asked questions. The rabbi blessed her with some kind of gift that I am unsure of but all I know is that Lola was surprised and was reduced to tears. You do the math. She was so grateful. A little later, I spoke with Lola one on one and I videotaped her thoughts about the aftermath of Katrina and through it all, it was her faith in God that brought her through. That encouraged me because she wasn't extremely angry, frustrated yes, but grateful to be alive. Lola needs a lot of things, she said, but is in need of furniture the most. I took her name and information but I told her that I wanted to see the 9th ward. She offered to take us after she picked up her daughter from school. Her friend Shirley arrived to the site after we finished and Lola's daughter Brandy had come home from school. Brandy was a breath of fresh air and shared her feelings of the storm from a child's perspective. She talked about feeling disconnected living in Houston for a year even through life was normal there. Since Brandy is a senior in high school, she desperately wanted to graduate with her class at one of the local private Catholic schools. Her mother consented and they moved back. Brandy now wants to study Political Science at a college in Texas and eventually wants to become a Congresswoman so that she can change things in New Orleans.

After taking numerous pictures together, Shirley and Lola took Milynda and I on a real New Orleans tour of the 9th ward. We saw everything that was in the Spike Lee documentary and then some. We came up close to the levees and Lake Pontchartrain. I took pictures of churches that the back of the structure was destroyed but not the front. It was bizarre. I saw houses that had collided with other houses forming one large house. Homes were flattened and flooded cars were untouched. In Kinston, when we witnessed something crazy that the people would do we would say "Only in Kinston!". Well, today I saw a black man racing a horse in the middle of the street in ghetto. "Only in New Orleans!" We drove for at least two hours while taking pictures and asking questions. Finally we went past Southern University and then went to one of the best neighborhood seafood restaurants called Castnet. I had the best catfish ever!

I don't want it to be the last time that I hear from Lola, her daughter Brandy and Shirley. They are real people with real problems but have a real faith that God will take care of them. There was definitely a connection and we learned so much more than a thirty minute news cast could ever share.